wdp

I live in an apartment and deal with this all the time. If it is REALLY dirty find a hose and make it less dirty before bringing it in. If you don't have access to a hose use a soaking wet towel. Inside the apartment just wipe it down with a damp cloth or baby wipes. Run the chain through a rag or shop towel. Lubricate chain and pivot points as necessary. It's a ten minute operation. Also get a stand and a drop cloth, they will make everything easier.

cyccommute 

Bikes aren’t that delicate. You shouldn’t have problems every 150 miles much less have to inspect the bike that often. You shouldn’t have problems that would cause a breakdown in 1500 miles and probably closer to 15,000 miles.

Yes, and both Kapusta and I have pointed that out. But, often, what some people call a “clean” drivetrain I would call an oily mess.

Not talking about maintenance. Talking about washing. Two different things.

But sometimes you do wear clothes that look lived in. Think blue jeans.

I can also make my bikes look nice and shiny in about 5 minutes at a carwash. Then I have more time for riding.

GlennR

So you've never had a cut tire? I rather replace a tire that has a serious cut than wait for it to blowout on a ride.

I have Ceramic Speed bearings and they need to be greased for best performance and life.

I also clean the brake surface on the carbon wheels and cleanout the brake pad grooves.

I guess if I had a beater bike and only road around the neighborhoor I would not service or clean it. But I have a high performance bike and enjoy when it's working like new... even after 26,000 miles.

And blue jeans are fine, just as long they don't have grease stains on them from working on your car.

BTW... that cassette has 24,000 miles on it. Not what i'd call a oily mess.


And every winter I take it apart and rebuild as much as I can. Am i anal... you bet.



And it's no fun helping someone change a tube for the first time on the side of the road on a filthy bike. I don't carry rubber gloves because I don't expect to get filthy.

cyccommute 

Yup. Had cut tires. Washing the bike hasn’t been the key to finding the cut in my experience. Nor has not washing my bike kept me from finding cut tires.

Every 150 miles?! Ceramic Speed says that the hub and bottom bracket bearing need grease about every 5000 miles...and I suspect that is a very conservative estimate. The whole point of ceramic bearings is that they are harder, smoother, and have less friction than steel ones.

I don’t know about carbon rims...I only use aluminum... but I would suspect that they really don’t need cleaning every 150 miles.

I have “high performance bikes” as well. They don’t need cleaning every week. They don’t need cleaning every month. My commuter bike has 25,000 miles on it. I haven’t had to do much of anything to it over those miles.

Because you wash it every 150 miles.

Mine hasn’t been washed since about 2015 in Bensalem, PA after about 700 miles on dirt roads and towpaths Ontario, New York and Pennsylvania.


Works just fine. But cleanliness of the drivetrain is more a function of the lubricant than anything else.

I’m sure there is some dirt in your spoke nipples. Perhaps you should disassemble the wheels to clean it out. On a serious note, constant disassembly and reassembly can be detrimental to the parts. Threads wear out. Threads can be damaged. Readjustments need to be made if you take everything apart and put it back together. All my bearings are cartridge units that need no maintenance so there is really no need to disassemble my bikes unless I’m changing something. I do change parts constantly.

So do you require someone on the side of the road to wash their bike before you touch it? About the only dirt that a tire has on it is from brake dust and/or road dust. There’s not grease on the wheel since brakes don’t work all that well when greased.

I do agree with you that I don’t like greasy chains but I have to deal with those every time I work at my local co-op. I wear gloves there and avoid oil based lubricants on my bikes like I’d avoid someone coughing now.

oldlady62

I did this occasionally to wash my car when I lived in apartments. Would be even easier with a bike. Or find somebody with a sprinkler on and ride through.

WinterCommuter

Checkout this video:


i follow it during the winter. I wash the commuter everyday and it works great for me. Use a couple water bottles wash/rinse or buy a piss can described above. I do it on the driveway. Take an old t shirt for drying and a lube bottle.

Gresp15C

Bucket, sponge, and rag works for me. No particular schedule, usually just when I'm tidying the garage or doing something equally unnecessary.

I find any kind of soap to be more trouble than it's worth, because it has to be rinsed off. Same with washing windows, I just use plain water.